It was on the fourth day of training since everyone had hit the early soldier stage that Talon finally found the person he wanted for his squad.
He had been spectating a match between runners, like he was mainly doing for the last couple of days. One fighter relied on enhanced speed and reflexes, darting through the arena with precision and fluidity. The other, a girl named Luna, had a power that baffled him.
Her movements were unpredictable, almost chaotic. One moment, she was lightning-fast, faster than Talon, even, and as he had come to find out, that was rare even among runners.
The next, she slowed to a near crawl, her motions heavy but deliberate, each step carrying an almost palpable weight.
It was... confusing.
'What kind of power is that?' he wondered, leaning forward over the railing as he watched the fight unfold.
The match was a close one. When Luna moved fast, she was untouchable, dodging her opponent's every strike with ease. But her attacks lacked impact; they bounced harmlessly off her opponent.
Then, in an instant, she shifted, her strikes became devastatingly powerful, capable of breaking through defenses, but her speed vanished, leaving her open to counters.
Her opponent exploited the imbalance perfectly. When Luna sped up, they hunkered down defensively. When she slowed, they danced just out of her reach. The fight ended abruptly when Luna mistimed her approach, running straight into her opponent's blade and dying.
Talon scratched his head. 'Fast but no strength, strong but no speed. What kind of power does that?'
Curiosity got the better of him. As Luna teleported off the field, looking frustrated but not defeated, Talon made his way over.
"Hey," he called out, offering a friendly wave. "Name's Talon. I saw your fight. You looked great out there."
She turned to him, her gaze sharp and assessing. Her accent was heavy, almost melodic, making her words stand out. "Aye, thanks... but what d'ye want?"
'Colony world,' Talon guessed immediately. Her accent reminded him of some of the outer settlements, some of which sent young recruits to the acadamies.
"I'm putting together a squad," he said, his tone straightforward. "I could take someone random with a good disposition for the Runner role, but your speed? It's unmatched. It lines up perfectly with what our team needs to win this thing."
She raised an eyebrow, her interest clearly piqued, but her suspicion remained. "And yer power?"
Talon hesitated briefly before answering, trying to sound confident. "Spear, rare ranked stat multiplier. I handle the heat of the fight. You'd be a game-changer for us, though."
Luna crossed her arms, considering him carefully. "Aye, flattery's nice an' all, but I don't know you or yer squad. I'm no' about to join just anyone. If ye want me on yer team..." She smirked, her eyes glinting with challenge. "Let's fight."
Talon tilted his head. "A fight? Sure. What environment?"
"Random," she said with a shrug. "So long as it's not oceanic or space. Don't fancy drowning or floating about, do ye?"
He grinned, her fiery attitude reminding him of Jason. "Fair enough. Lethal or non-lethal?"
"Non-lethal," she said with a snort. "Dyin' in here's no' fun a' all."
They headed down toward an open arena. Once inside, they stepped into the loading zone, where the system generated a random environment.
Soon enough, the simulation loaded, and they found themselves in an old, urban cityscape. The streets were narrow, lined with brick buildings and small skyscrapers that barely scraped the sky at a couple of hundred meters.
Vehicles with rubber tires were parked haphazardly along the roads, their old designs adding to the antiquated atmosphere. The low hum of city life played faintly in the background, broken only by the distant sound of honking horns.
Talon stretched his shoulders, a confident grin tugging at his lips as he scanned the environment. "Perfect."
He opted to forgo his vibrosword for this fight, preferring to rely on his fists and kicks instead.
Luna stood across from him, only 200 meters away, her stance loose but ready. "Hope yer better than ye look, Graves," she yelled teasingly, shifting her weight from one foot to the other.
Her form blurred briefly as she turned light and fast, a gust of wind brushing past Talon.
He didn't respond. Instead, he focused, centering himself. This wasn't his first time in an urban simulation, and he knew these tight streets and scattered cover gave him the edge.
Leon's voice crackled through the comms, his tone almost amused. "Begin."
Talon briefly wondered why Leon always came to watch his fights. There were countless other cadets sparring, but the instructor never missed one of his matches.
His thoughts snapped back as Luna shot forward like a bullet, her feet barely touching the ground as she zigzagged between the buildings. Talon moved instinctively, ducking behind a parked vehicle as she closed the distance in an instant, her light form making her nearly impossible to track.
The car beside him exploded into pieces as her fist connected with it, sending shards of metal flying in all directions. Talon rolled out of the way, already calculating her next move.
"You're fast," he called, his tone calm despite the chaos. "But speed without power? That's not enough."
Luna's grin widened as she skidded to a halt, her form shifting mid-motion. Her movements slowed, and her body seemed to sink into the ground as though weighed down. When she moved again, the pavement cracked beneath her feet, the sheer force of her step leaving visible dents.
"Ye sure about that?" she shot back, lunging toward him with a thunderous swing.
But it was slow.
Talon sidestepped, the blow barely grazing his shoulder but smashing through the wall behind him as if it were paper. He didn't let her recover. He closed the gap, his superior speed at that moment making him a blur as he delivered a sharp kick to her midsection.
The impact sent Luna skidding back across the street, her heavy form grinding against the asphalt. She grimaced but recovered quickly, her body lightening once more as she darted out of reach.
"You're predictable," Talon taunted, leaping onto a nearby building. He scaled it with ease, his enhanced strength allowing him to vault to the rooftop in seconds. From there, he tracked her movements, waiting for the perfect moment.
Luna darted through the streets below, her speed incredible again, but Talon noticed the pattern. She couldn't keep up her fast form for long, and her shifts to her heavy form left her exposed.
'Now.'
Talon jumped, his body a missile as he plummeted toward her. Luna shifted heavy at the last second, bracing herself for impact, but it didn't matter. Talon slammed into her with a ferocious punch, the force sending her sprawling.
Before she could recover, he was already there, his superior reflexes keeping him two steps ahead. He grabbed her arm, twisting her momentum against her and throwing her into a nearby wall. The building shuddered with the impact as Luna slumped to the ground, her breathing ragged.
She looked up, dazed but defiant. "Yer no' bad," she admitted, her accent thicker as she tried to catch her breath.
Talon crouched beside her, offering a hand. "You're better than you give yourself credit for. But against me in this environment?" He grinned. "You're not winning this one."
Leon's voice crackled back in. "Match over. Winner: Graves."
The arena dissolved around them, returning them to the grassy plateau.
"Alright, Captain," she said, crossing her arms. "Ye've impressed me. Let's talk."
Talon grinned.
The team was complete, and now all that was left was to prepare for the tournament.